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012 1. 28, 1952 c M K|NGHORN Re. CLAPBOARD UNIT FOR WALL COVERINGS Original Filed Jan. 8. 1947 I -2 Sl-lEETS-S!IEET 1 mun! ATTORNEY 28, 1952 c. M. KINGHORN Re. 23,568

cmsomo UNIT FOR WALL covzamcs Original Filed Jan. v8. 1947 INVENTOR Charles M. Kinghorn ATTORNEY Reiuued on. 28', 1952 za'sea cnarnoaan UNIT roa WALL covaamcs Charles M. Kinghorn, Port Chester, N. Y., as-

signor to Cresawell Roll Forming Company, Limited, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, a corporation of Quebec Original No. 2,477,987, dated August}, 1949, Se-

rial No. 720,811, January 8, 1947. Application for reissue July 25, 1950, Serial No. ll ,833

2 Claims. (of. 189 -86) brackets appearrin the original patentbut forms no part of this 1 Re. 23,568 OFFICE Matter enclosed in heavy reissue specification;

This invention relates to wall covering or wallconstituting units, such as weatherboards or clapboards, made of being substituted for such units now usually made of wood. More particularly, the invention 5 According to another feature a splice plate is resides in the shape or form of the wallunit; in provided to hug the inner face of the body and details thereof, including the apertures therein horizontal portion of the clapboard profile. for nails; and in the manner of forming the The invention possesses other objects and feasame. tures of advantage, some of which with the fore- When one comes to substitute a metal clapgoing will be set forth in the following descripboard,,for instance, for a wooden clapboard, untion. In the following description and in the expected difficulties appear. A major diiliculty claims, parts will be identified by specific names or objection is that if the metal clapboard be for convenience. but they are intended to be as shaped like a wooden clapboard, raindrops or generic in theirapplication to similar parts as sleet falling on the metal clapboard cause noise is the art will permit. In the accompanying drawwhich might at times reach such severity as to ings there has been illustrated the best embodibecalled a racket. This noise, when long conment of the invention known to me, but such tinued can cause a significant nervous irritation embodiment is to be regarded as typical only of on the part of occupants of a house that is made many possible embodiments, and the invention is of such clapboards so one of the objects of this not to be limited thereto. invention is to devise ways and means for mini- The novel features considered characteristic of mizing such noise and to make such clapboard my invention are set forth with particularity in as nearly noiseless as possible. When such clapthe appended claims. The invention itself, how- -b0ards -are made of a more or less readily formever, both as to its organization and its method able and cheap metal such as aluminum, there of operation, together with additional objects and is a tendency for such metal to be dented when a advantages thereof, will best be understood from stepladder or other solid implement is pressed the following description of a specific embodiagainst it; Therefore, another object of this inment when read in connection with the accomvention is to devise ways and means for shaping panying drawings in which I the clapboard so that it normally resists such Fig. 1 is a front view of a clapboard assembly denting or other localized unsightly deformation. with parts broken away to show splice plate and Another object is to devise units that are readily interlocking connection; assembled and fastened in place by a novice. Fig. 2 is a vertical section on the line "2-2 of Still another object is to devise means for Fig. 1 through the clapboard assembly outside of Joining the units together to form a completely a splice plate; water-proof and moisture-proof Joint between i Fig. 3 is a vertical section on the line 3-3 the assembled units. through the clapboard assembly and through a Another object is to provide splicing means for splice plate; abutting clapboard end portions. Fig. 4 is a sectional perspective view of a clap- These objects are attained by providing a horiboard assembly showing the manner of tensioning zontal metal clapboard profile which is internally the clapboards incident to their being fastened tensioned by resilient deflection when being fasupon a supporting framework; toned to a S pp t g frame work, and which is Figs. 5 and 6 are enlarged detail figures showso shaped at the upper end interlocks with or ing the interconnection of a pair of assembled engages in a recess formed at the lower end of clapboards withoutand with tension respecthe preceding clapboard above, and that the retively; cess is formed by a vertical downwardly extend- Fig. 7 shows the manner of fastening the skirt ing terminal flange portion having perforations portion of a clapboardfor fastening to the frame work. A respective portion of the metal weather-Q Other objects are attained by providing elonboard or clapboard assembly shows clapboard gated perforations in the lower terminal portion strip or unit III to abut endwise with a clapboard of the clapboard. the perforations extending strip or unit Hla representing in effect a horiparallel to the bottom edge of the clapboard. .zontal continuation of the formed linear clap- Acoording to one feature the metal clapboard board l0. Associated with the clapboard ill in profile has'a convex body portion with the lower interlocking and overlapping relationship are formable sheet metal capable of matter printed in italics indicates the additions made by reissue.

2 end thereofprotruding outwardly, a horizontal inwardly extending bottom portion terminating in a vertical downwardly extending'perforated flange or skirt portion.

vertical body portion ll upper portion II and at D whereby there stituting an inverted vertical groove 23 tuted by the walls Ila'and 23b being mounted upon and cases similar clapboard l I and I! in the sense that each of the clapboards thus associated with one another has its lower edge portion fastened or nailed to a backing structure i3 while its upper edge portion is retained in an inverted groove formed in and along the lower edge portion of the preceding clapboard above.

The cross-sectional shape or profile of a representative clapboard comprises a substantially presenting in effect a slightly shallow concave outer contour since'that body portion comprises a substantially straight a lower portion It diverging more markedly although steeply from the vertical and outwardly from the backing structure II. The upper portion I! in turn may be said to comprise a substantially straight vertical portion l1 appearing to lie against or tangential with respect to the vertical face of the backing structure it, and a slightly diverging portion ll terminating in the groove of the clapboard above. The por- 4 III and I! each by means of a single nail II and 39 respectively disposed in the middle of a respective aperture 31. In this way, because of the horizontal disposition and because of the slotlike character of the apertures 31 the clapboard is substantially free to horizontally expand or contract with respect to its fixed middle portion.

tion ii in turn may be said to comprise the diverging portion l9 proper and a vertical straighter upper terminal portion 20 appearing to be substantially parallel to the vertical face of the backing structure it, the line of demarcation between the two portions l8 and 20 being indicated as r is defined a very slight or shallow bend at the upper edge portion of the clapboard. The lower end portionof the clapboard profile is formed by an inwardly extending portion 2| which may be said to be substantially ornearly horizontal although it is shown to have a slight or shallow horizontal as indicated by the angle A. This substantially horizontal or inward portion or ledge 2| has'at its inner end a folded portion 22 conconstithereof.

The wall 28b of the groove extends downwardlyto form a vertical terminal skirt portion 24 extending a distance 2! below the lowest point of the inward portion 2] and lies flat against the vertical face of the backing structure I! to which it is fastened.

The skirt portion II has D-shaped horizontally extending elongatedapertures' Ila which are equidistantly spaced from one another and through which nails 25a may be drivento fasten the skirt portion 2| to the backing structure 13 which for example may be of wood,

The upper edge portion of the clapboard I0 is held inplace by being lodged in the lower end grooved portion 28 of a similar associated clapboard 21 which may be mounted upon and fastened to the backing structure in a manner similar to that of clapboard Ill.

The lower end portion engages with the upper edge portion 28 of a third similar clapboard is by extending into the groove 28 of clapboard ID, the clapboard I9 otherwise fastened to the backing structure in a manner similar to that of clapboard A manner of'fastening the lower end skirt portion of such a clapboard to a backing structure such as represented by studs, posts or uprights III, II and II is shown in Fig. '7'. A lower end skirt portion II of a clapboard fl (herefractionally shown) has its middle portion fixed'to post Si by means of a pair of nails and 38 placed in the respective end corners of one of a series. of D-shaped and horizontally extending apertures 31. The end portions of this clapboard are shown to be fastened to the respective posts inclination relative to the In Fig. l is further shown a manner of splicing the mutually adjoining ends clapboards II and Na by means of an inserted splice-plate ll. A somewhat exaggerated space orv clearance ll is shown between the ends of these clapboards. The splice-plate ll is shaped substantially as the clapboard, that is to say in such a manner that it will hug the rear face or contour of the clapboard except for the grooved portion thereof (as shown in Fig. 3) The spliceplate 40 therefore comprises a conoavely shaped generally vertical portion 41 and an inwardly extending foot portion 43.

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 illustrate the manner of assembly and fixing the clapboards upon a backing structure in such a manner that they will be tensioned against the backing structure and so that 48 is shown in the process of being applied when tion;

of clapboard llinterit is still in its untensioned and therefore more strongly curved state, although with its upper edge portion 49 already loosely lodging in the lower end groove 50 of the clapboard H for limited lateral movement therein (see Figures '5 and- 6) This preliminary condition or positioning of the yet untensioned clapboard 48 is more clearly presented in the enlarged detail of Fig. 5, while the i tensloned condition in equally enlarged similar detail view is shown in Fig. 6. In the latter posialso shown in Fig. 2, the upper edge ll (Fig. 6) is caused to bear against the outer face of the groove 28 in moisture-obstructing relationship due to the tension of the concave portion of the clapboard or weatherboard strip acting through flattened portion [1 as a fulcrum.

While thus held position in relation to the clapboard 44 the lower edge'portion ll of clapboard ll is pressed against the backing structure ll so that it will assume the more flattened and internally tensioned condition (as indicated in dotand-dash lines) in which condition it closely resembles the previously attached clapboard M.

v clapboard ll will then be held in place by means of nails. (not particularly shown) driven through apertures '3. This procedure may be repeated in the course of attaching and fastening successive clapboards by adding them on downwardly one after the other.-

This invention offers several features of advantage. Fig. 4, especially in its lower part, illusrates one, namely, the metal weatherboard or clapboard strip I! has an exposed concave face while presenting a convex face to the building structure 45 or the studding thereof against which the strip is to be secured. The strip ll of sheet material comprises a main body portion having a longitudinal concavity extending throughout its of the companion in place,' that is fastened to a sauce top marginal portion is emplaced in or against the building structure, the body curves outwardly away from the wall sufficiently so that the laterally projecting bottom marginal portion 2| (Fig. 2) is out of contact with and is spaced from the building structure a distance far enough to allow the, operator's hand to remain on that bottom marginal portion until the strip or unit has the edge of the top marginal portion 20 seated in place. Thereafter, when the depending apertured skirt 24 is nailed or otherwise fixed to the building structure it, asshown in Fig. 2, and as can be seen in Figs. 4 and 6, there is a face-to-face contact between the'building structure and the skirt, and there is tangential contact between the building structure and the convex wall-facing face of the strip, while the corresponding face of the top portion 40 is pressed away from the building structure as a result of such contacts and the flattening of a portion of the longitudinal concavity of the main body of the strip and the consequent lessened curvature of the strip.

Attention is directed to the fact that the normal degree of curvature of the weatherboard or strip as formed, is significantly lessened and rendered abnormal-indeed, somewhat or partially deformed into providing the flattened section ll (Fig. 2) that serves as a fulcrum through which the tension on the curved lower scction'of the strip acts to maintain the top portion 48 (Fig. 6) of the strip forced away from the building structure and against the outer side or wall of the groove in the fold it of the bottom portion of the superjacent strip or unit. This arrangement andfunctioning gives such strength to the strip for resisting indentation that such strips can be applied directly to the wall studding without any intermediate sheathing or other boards.

Now as to the spliceor Joint-plates 40 for use behind joints in the linear strips: They are disposed bridgingly on the convex side of abutting edgee of two aligned strips. These 'jointplates 40 are pieces of metal orother sheet material having a main body and a bottom extension 43 that extends toward the building structure. These plates are of such a size, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, thatirrespective of its original curved shape, when so positioned and incorporated into the building structure, the upper free edge of the plate also enters the groove 50 of the fold it of the superjacentstrlp (along with the upper edge of the strips in front of the jointplate 40). Meanwhile, the edge of the lateral extension 43 of the plate bears against the outer side of the fold of the plate-contacting strips ill and Illa, and the body of the plate has its upper portion pressed and tensioned against the building structure as a result of the tensioned and deformed curvature of the plate-contacting strips whereby the joint-plate has forced curvature, as at I! in Fig, 3, to correspond to the tensioned curvature of the. plate-contacting strips and forced pressure between substantially its entire outer surface and the inner convex surfaces of the plate-contacting strips as a result of the tensioned curvature and deformed shape of those strips.

These linear formed weatherboard strips or units, while primarily designed for use as weatherboards or clapboards or siding on vertical building structures because they cast horizontally extending shadows, can, with equal facility and advantage, be used on roof structures where it is satisfactory to simulate somewhat horizontal shadow lines usually associated with shingle construction'.

The curvature of the weatherboard strips has an unexpected effect of reflecting noisy sounds so that houses built of such strips are quieter than wooden or brick houses. The heat-reflective properties of the curved strips also make a house built of them cooler in summer and warmer in winter than a corresponding wooden house.

[1. As a new article of manufacture, a sheet metal section for siding, roofing and the like consisting of a main body curved transversely from one side edge of the body to the opposite side edge thereof and presenting a front concave face and an inner convex face, said body being provided at one of its side edges with a contact face portion and having at its opposite side edge a projecting attaching portion extending from the inner face of the main body and provided with a groove. the curvature of the main body causing deformation and tensioning of the same and a pressure contact of the contact face portion when the main body is arranged against a fixed structure and the contact face portion and the projecting attaching portions are arranged contiguous to said structure] [2. A weatherboard construction unit for the sides and roof of building structures comprising a linearly extending metal strip composed of a main body curved transversely from one side to the other and presenting an outer concave face and an inner convex face, said body being provided at one side with'a contact face portion and having at the opposite side an attaching portion projecting from the inner face of the body and extending longitudinally thereof and having a longitudinal groove, the curvature of the main body causing deformation, tensioning and stiffening of the same and a pressure contact of the contact face portion when the main body is arranged against a building structure and the contact face portion and the attaching portion are brought closely adjacent said structure] 3. A clapboard assembly for a building, comprising a plurality of linearly-extending tensionstiflened clapboard units of resiliently-deformable springy sheet metal continuously and overlappinyly arranged one above the other against a fired support wherein each unit is cross-sectionally uniform both as to thickness and shape and includes a main body having an intermediate portion pressed into direct flat contact with the fired support and therebelow a lower curved portion directed away from the fixed structure rected away from the fixed structure but to a lesser extent than said bottom curved portion and terminating in a flat marginal top portion set at a. rearward angle to the upper curved portion. said last mentioned element of the subjacenf unit projecting between the side walls of the famous of the superjacent unit for a limited lateral movement therebetween and with the'outer face only of the said top portion in moistureobstructing contact with that side wall of the fold that is farthest removed from the fixed support, the upper and the lower curved portions of the unit being thus under significant laterally-ea:- erted tension from the flat contact portion as a fulcrum so as to be less curved than during the initial normal curvature of the unit when unemplaced, whereby as emplaced each clapboard unit is tension-deformed for maximizing stiflening thereof while minimizing noise-reflection.

4. A clapboard unit for use on a building and 1 adapted to cooperate'with a plurality of similar linearly-extending tension-stinened clapboard units of resiliently-deformable springy sheet metal contiguously and overlapp'ingly arranged one above theother against a fixed support wherein the unit is linearly-extending resilient deformable springy sheet metal cross-sectionally' uniform both as to thickness and shape and includes a main body comprising an intermediate portion to be pressed when emplaced into direct flat contact with the fixed support and therebelow a lower outwardly curved portion to be directed away from the Med structure followed by a bend inwardly providing a ledge merging into a fold rising upwardly from the ledge providing an in,- vert'ed vertical groove consisting of a rising wall and a descending free side wall spaced substantially wider apart than the thickness of the unit with the free side wall of the groove terminating in a marginal skirt to be placed in contact with the fixed structure, said mainbody having above the intermediate portion an upper outwardlycurved portion to be directed away from the fixed structure but to a lesser extent than said bottom curved portion and terminating in a flat marginal top portion set at an inwardly directed angle to the upper curved portion, said last mentioned with t amass element adapted to profect into and between the walls of the vertical groove of the next contiguous v unit for a limited lateral movement therebetween outer face only of said top portion in moisture-obstructing contact with that side wall of the groove that is farthest removed from the fixed support, the upper and the lower curved portions of the unit thus to be under significant laterally-exerted tension from the .flat contact portion as a fulcrum so as to be less curved than during the initial normal curvature of the unit,

. Number Name Date 214,027 Currier Apr. 8, 1879 343,775 Ottlwell- June 15, 1886 720,893 Charlebois Feb. 17, 1903 1,110,238 Spiegel Sept. 8, 1914 1,666,115 Bonsall Apr. 17, 1928 2,095,533 Schmidt Oct. 12, 1937 2,167,816 Small 1 Aug. 1, 1939 2,180,317 Davis Nov. 14, 1939 2,227,535 Crabtree Jan. 7, 1941 2,478,451 Murphy et a1 July 19, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 5,231 Great Britain of 1887 whereby as emplaced each clapboard unit is tension-deformed for maximizing stiflening thereof while minimizing noise-reflection.

' CHARLES M. KmGHQRN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the tlle 0! this patent or the originalpatent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

